Posting Pic's Instructions
Todd O. Cronkhite Maine Native in FL. Exile :~(
>OK, there seems to be some who need info on how to post pics. Here is a cut and pasted set of instructions that Hank Knight posted to me on March 31st, 2006. His reply was titled "Detailed Instructions For Resizing With Paint"
This set of Instructions took me, Mr. Computer Moron from being completely incapable of posting pics to being almost a whiz at it now. I think this set of instructions need to be permanely saved for Future Islanders use.
Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeere's Hank!
There are lots of ways to resize photographs and programs that do it for you - one of which is available for free download from the Microsoft Home Page, but I can't tell you exactly how to find it. I downloaded it a year or two ago and have since lost the directions. You can probably find it if you look. But there is an easy way to do it with the software that you probably already have on your computer. If you have basic Microsoft software including, Windows XP, it comes with an accessory program called "Paint" you can use to resize your photos. This method works best with photos taken with the camera set to take "small/normal" or "basic" sized pictures rather than the "large/fine" mode. Large pictures require more "shrinking" and you end up with a poor quality image. Here's how to resize pictures you've downloaded from your camera to your computer:
Select the photo you want to resize from the "my pictures" file on your computer and right click on it. A drop down screen will open asking you what you want to do with the photo. Click on "Open with." Another screen will open with various software programs options; double click on "Paint." The photograph will open in the "Paint" program. If it is a large photo, you will only be able to see a portion of it; you have to scroll around to view the whole picture. This is how it looks to the recipient when you e-mail the large photo. The object is to get the size reduced so you can see the whole photo on the screen at one time.
Go up to the menu bar at the top of the screen and click on "Image." Select "Stretch/Skew" from the drop down menu and click on it. A drop down screen will appear the top section of which is labeled "Stretch" (don't mess with "Skew"). Stretch has two windows, each of which has the number "100" in it. This represents 100% of the current size of the image. Delete the number 100 in each window and replace it with some other smaller number; how small depends on how much you want to reduce the size of the image. For a very large image, you might want to enter 25% or even 10% in each window. Then click O.K. If the image size doesn't suit you, go up to the top tool bar, click on "Edit" and then on "Undo" to get back to the original, then pick another number and click O.K. A little trial and error will quickly teach you how much to reduce the image to get it to a reasonable size. You can right click on the image and select "Properties" from the drop down menu. Properties will tell you how large the image is in bits (or is it bytes?). I think your image needs to be 40 KB or less to post on Wood Central
This is important: When you get the image to size you want, don't close the window. If you do, the computer will ask you if you want to replace the original image. If you click "yes," you will replace the original large image with the reduced one and you will lose the original image. Instead, click on "File" at the top left of the screen, then on "Save As" to save the reduced image as a separate file. All you need to do is to change the file name and click on "save" to save it as a separate file. To change the file name, add something (a number or a letter) to the file name in the window on the "save as" screen. My photos are named with three letters "DSC" followed by a number which designates the number of the photo in the series saved on your computer. Others may begin with "IMG" (for "image") or some other designation followed by a number. I usually add a letter like "A" or the word "small" after the number. You could just add a number like "1" at the beginning of the number designation. Don't mess with the "JPG" designation; it tells the computer the file is a photograph. After changing the file name, click on "save" and the resized photo will be saved in your "My Photos" file as a separate photo with the new name. When you want to e-mail or post the photo, select this reduced image from your computer file and send away.
Good luck.
Hank